Markus Klinko is one of the most important photographers of fashion and celebrities in the world today. Famous for his iconic images and album covers of great artists such as David Bowie, Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Kanye West, Christina Aguilera and Mariah Carey. He is the author of the famous cover of “Dangerously in Love”, the debut album of Beyonce, and of “Heathen” by David Bowie, among many others. Bowie was also the theme of his exhibition “David Bowie Unseen,” which went round the world, exhibiting uncommon photos of the rock star.

His connection to music is not new. Before embracing photography as a profession, Markus was a famous harpist with several records released and international tours with orchestras. In 1994, due to a medical problem in his right hand, he had to quit his musical career. Music lost a great harpist, but in the other hand, photography gained one of its most genial artists.

Markus was born in Switzerland, in 1961, started his career in Paris and London, then moved his studio to New York. He was discovered by the fashion editor Isabella Blow, who invited him to photograph for the magazine of the London Sunday Times. Today he works regularly for magazines like Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar and Interview. And big brands as Lancôme, L’Oréal Paris, Nike, Hugo Boss and Remy Martin have already hired him to shoot their campaigns.

Among the celebrities of the film and fashion industries, that he shoots are Anne Hathaway, Kate Winslet, Will Smith, Eva Mendes, Iman, Naomi Campbell, Dita Von Teese and Laetitia Casta. Klinko captured the image of Laetitia stucked in a web made of real diamonds. In 2012, he launched the book “Icons” in partnership with the editor Indrani. The cover features a photo of Lady Gaga with her eyes closed and her eyelids painted with giant eyes to make her look like a Japanese comic book character.

Among the exhibitions he has done are the one at the Lincoln Center in New York with the photos from “Icons”. Another on Broadway subway station, in Manhattan, with gigantic David Bowie installations, promoted by Spotify. And the last “2000s – The Exhibition” held in 2018 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, in collaboration with Fuji Film, exposing images that are milestones of the decade that transformed photography. In 2013, he began a partnership with a young photographer of Chinese origin, forming the duo Markus & Koala. They are now working on a series of close-ups, which turn faces into canvases for their art.